Meta
by AsianVoodoo
Summary: It's hard to convince someone you're innocent when everything about you is saying otherwise.
1. The Guard and the Meta

**[A/N]**: METAHUMAN: someone with abilities outside the human norm. there are different versions of "metahumans" in literature. the kind used in this is most similar to the Marvel usage, most commonly referred to as mutants and the most popular example being the "X-Men." metahumans and their abilities vary greatly and can look completely normal or completely otherworldly. in this story metahumans are often kidnapped and their cells are used for illegal purposes. no one knows what created the metahumans.

THE CITY: the city doesn't have a proper name. it is a multi-tiered city, the lowest levels being underground where the inhabitants never see more than artificial light. buildings are modern, and each level functions as an average city. the city's highest level is the richest level, each level getting 'poorer' as you go down. the city's structure goes into the clouds and well underground. it is completely possibly to travel between tiers, but it is less common in the lowest levels.

* * *

He darted down the sullen alleyways of the lower city. The boy came around a sharp curve, feet skidding as he pivoted his body, hand bracing against the ground to make up for the lack of balance. Quickly, he righted himself and bolted down the pathway. His heart raced as he glanced behind him, he couldn't spot the pursuer but he _knew_ that the man was still chasing after him.

The boy shoved locks of pale hair from his vision, he could spot the dead end coming up in the distance and immediately turned down the nearest pathway. A loud screech forced its way out of his throat as he spotted the man waiting for him at the exit of the alley. The amount of momentum the boy possessed when he attempted to stop himself had him tumbling forward, landing on his stomach in front of the man.

With a groan, he picked himself up just enough to sit on his rear, legs bent in front of him. For just a moment the sense of danger disappeared as he gingerly rubbed at his scraped chin— until he cause the artificial light of the underground layer reflecting off of the blade pointed at his face. There was a shark intake of breath as he stared at the sword, for a moment in disbelief that it was even there. When he glanced up at the man, he lifted his hands in a show of innocence.

The boy didn't even know the reason he'd been chased. He'd simply been on his way home, hands full with grocery bags when that blade had appeared in his face. He had immediately bolted, of course, and now they were in this particular situation.

Now that the boy was able to look at his pursuer, he couldn't help but think that the swordsman was actually quite good looking. Long dark hair that reminded him of expensive silk and those deep, _deep_, blue eyes full of— well, at this moment, vicious animosity. He stared in awe at the Asian man until the glare deepened and a shiver went down his spine.

"Uhm," He licked his lips, his mouth had gone impossibly dry; but he attempted to swallow the lump of panic in his throat. "Might I ask why you're attempting to kill me?"

There could have been numerous reasons, he realized. So many possibilities and, of course, none of the favourable. He figured it wasn't a mugging, too much work to chase him down and this was definitely not a tier where you'd expect to find someone with enough money to make the effort. Probably not a kidnapping— again, not enough money in this tier for a ransom and the boy looked useless anyway. Unless it was for _those_ circumstances, but the man looked well enough off to be able to handle that easily enough.

Which left the least favourable option.

His appearance was a dead giveaway that he was't normal. White hair, pale eyes, and that deep red marking along his eye. He cursed his appearance often. After all, some metahumans looked completely normal.

Then again, some also resembled apes, so he supposed he shouldn't complain.

The marking on his eye was something all metahumans had; or some form of marking. A sign they were given when their status was discovered [mostly at birth or early childhood] to show what they were. Some weren't visible to the naked eye, some where— it all depended on the medical facility.

Not that having the marking elsewhere would have hidden the rest of his differences, but he could hope.

He was well aware that metahumans in the lower tier, especially visible ones, were worse off. Metahumans just like him, ones that wouldn't be missed, who could be easily hauled off to have their cells used for God only knew.

How would he escape if that was the purpose? He scrambled to find words, because the man wasn't speaking— simply glaring at him and pointing the sword at his nose.

"Uhm," He began cautiously. "Is.. well, is, uhm, this because I am a— well, meta? I-if that's so, then—"

"Tch."

The boy blinked, words falling silent. The other had made a noise, right? He'd scoffed. What did that imply? A small swell of panic rose in his gut— God, what did he do? He'd never actually thought of the possibility of this situation.

"Haven't you ever seen a fucking guard before, dumbass?" The Asian male asked, his tone condescending. "I'm not some fucking criminal going to haul you off, Jesus Christ."

"Uhm—" He bit his tongue. A guard, right. That was probably why the man was dressed in a pristine and definitely expensive black and red uniform. He felt ridiculously stupid— but he had not, in fact, ever actually seen a guard. They often neglected the parts of the city he lived in. "No, I haven't."

His pursuer gave him a look— one that definitely questioned his intelligence. The boy felt a big irritated by that, it wasn't his fault the guards didn't give enough of a fuck about the lower tiers to patrol properly. Half the time the boy forgot they existed until he heard someone talking about them.

"If you're a guard then why were you chasing after me?" He asked, "Last I heard they only went after criminals. I highly doubt it was some hideous offense to go buy groceries— which, _by the way_, I dropped because you were waving that blasted sword in my face." The memory of his groceries sort of rose his irritation, he'd bought quite a big and now it was probably being crushed by pedestrians off in the middle of the tier. He was hungry, goddamnit. Not to mention the fucking sword was still in his face and he was really getting sick of it. "Speaking of your blade, I would ask that you_ kindly_ remove it. Who just goes around shoving weapons in other peoples' faces?"

The guard grit his teeth, not even bothering to go through with the pale-haired male's request to lower his weapon. "A short, white-haired meta was seen causing shit in the upper levels not too long ago." He hissed, "The guards in the immediate area chased him until he disappeared into the lower levels."

"So you simply assumed it was me and decided to attack on sight?" What kind of bullshit was that. Didn't you have to at least accuse them verbally and allow the person to defend their case before you started in on trying to kill them? "I've never even been on the upper tiers before, nor have I ever committed a crime."

"Fleeing from a guard is a fucking crime, _Moyashi._"

"You were waving a sword in my face!" The boy hissed. Wait— what in the hell did he call him? It had to have been in another language, for the boy had no idea what it meant. "My name is Allen Walker, don't just go making up things to call me that I can't even understand."

The male clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth, withdrawing his blade and sheathing it. The metahuman let out a quiet sigh of relief until he felt a tight grip on his arm, tugging him to his feet and out of the alley.

He attempted to rip his arm away, but the guard's grip was stronger than he and he hissed. "If you would have just said to follow you I would have now let my arm go."

"Just shut the fuck up, brat." The guard said with an irritated huff, "Your voice is starting to give me a fucking headache."

* * *

**[A/N] **I apologize greatly for sudden disappearances. I got hit in the face with a great deal of medical problems. I hurt my hands and was unable to write or use a keyboard for a good week or two. I began to have severe back pain which grew worse and worse over time. After going to see a doctor, I was told the cause of the pain was scoliosis; my spine is curved towards the right at my heart area and I need to undergo physical therapy to fix it. And then lastly, I fell ill the past week or so. I'm working on fics as we speak, this one was just a sort of apology.

I don't know if I'm going to go anywhere with this AU though I do quite enjoy it, we will see.


	2. The Third Tier

**[A/N]: **Don't get spinal injuries, my friends. They suck ass and take forever to heal. I'm still not right and proper, it hurts to sit up for long periods of time which is why I have been so scarce. I'm on the mend and practically brain dead when it comes to writing, but I'm making an attempt and hopefully that's what counts.

I have an ao3 account- actually, I've had my invitation for quite a long time but never got around to making my actual account. I made the account a few months ago and figured I should start transferring works to that location. I'll still be uploading things here for a bit, but I don't yet know if I'll make the full switch. If I do, I will let you all know. The user I'm under is "asianvoodoo", so it's just about the same.

* * *

The Tower was a large cylindrical installation attached to the southwest corner of the City. Large and comprised mostly of glass and twisted metal, there were four smaller cylinders inside. It was the system that allowed transport between tiers, large elevators that could take you to whichever level you wished.

The lowest tier's inhabitants seldom saw the inside of these elevators. Some perhaps once or twice; but Allen Walker had never even been near the Tower. He had never expected to, he simply ignored it's existence completely.

Now he was being shoved through the glass doors, having been towed through the lowest tier by his new acquaintance: a quiet and temperamental Guard by the name of Kanda.

It was not but thirty minutes earlier he had been chased down by the Guard and accused of committing a crime two tiers above.

He stumbled into a large open room, not given a moment to take in the sight as he was now being shoved through. The swordsman grabbed him by the arm, tugging him towards one of the elevators. Kanda pushed past the group about to enter the small platform, fixing them with a murderous glare. Not a single one of them stepped foot into the elevator.

"You know you could have just told me to follow you, you didn't have to practically rip my arm off all the way here." Allen muttered. He got no response from the Guard, just a simple roll of the eyes.

Dick.

Kanda crossed his arms, moving towards the back of the elevator so he could lean against the glass. He shut his eyes just as the subtle whirring of machinery backing to lift the platform upwards.

The pale haired boy rubbed gingerly at his arm, flexing his fingers. The other really did have quite the grip. He glanced around the small area, glass caging them in as he watched the dirty tops of the buildings of the lowest level disappear. There was a lump in Allen's throat, he didn't know what the other tiers were like or which one he was going to.

He knew there was six tiers in total, two of which were underground. The only light they lowest two ever received were artificial. Allen Walker had never once ever seen sunlight. Whenever he looked skywards all that greeted his eyes was crude metal and large light fixtures.

Stories told that the sky was blue and vast. He'd always wanted to see it. In fact, he'd always dreamt of being able to ascend to the highest tier at least once. The weathliest and most beautiful part of the city, he'd been told. A wave of anxiety filled him as he contemplated it.

They weren't headed for the highest level, were they? God, it would be his luck to go to the tier of his dreams on a criminal charge. A frown twisted his lips- no, no, there was no way they were going to the sixth level. Impossible.

His thoughts had distracted him and when he blinked, he became suddenly aware of the immense darkness that surrounded them. Faint fluorescent lights on the roof of the elevator game them just enough to see shadowed outlines of details.

They were in the partition between the levels. The lowest tier's "sky" and the second tier's "ground." The boy approached the glass a safe distance from the Guard (who had not seemed to have moved an inch).

Pale fingers brushed against the cool surface as if he thought reaching out would allow him to touch the metal just beyond glass. He wondered how thick the layer of metal and machinery was. If he'd been paying attention when they'd entered it perhaps he'd be able to at least estimate.

Then, suddenly, there was light, causing him to squint and turn away. The problem, he learned, with glass elevators, is that no matter which direction you turn you will always get the searing pain of sudden bright light.

After his eyes had adjusted, he moved back to his former position. Eyes curiously wide and hands pressed to the window, he took in all of the second level he could.

It was incredible similar to the first level. Grungy and dirty buildings all crammed together along concrete pavement- but at the same time, it was nicer. The houses were larger, the buildings grew taller. The pedestrians walking the streets has cleaner clothes and better posture. The first two levels of the City were nothing pretty, but at least the second seemed to have retained their dignity.

Allen thought then that perhaps one day he'd at least be able to make it to this tier. Maybe then he wouldn't have to worry about being assaulted by an angry sword-weilding Guard during a grocery run.

Hesitantly, he glanced over at said Guard, curious gray eyes meeting piercings blue and he immediately looked away.

He heard a faint snort, as if the man were laughing at him. Allen grimaced, the curiousness of his expression abandoning him to pure annoyance. He glanced over at Kanda once more, "Is something funny?"

The swordsman shrugged, eyes shut once more, still leaning against the glass.

For a moment, Allen hoped the glass would vanish and the Guard would stumble backwards out of the elevator. That, however, would not happen; and soon darkness took them once more as they entered the partition between the second and third level.

"Where are we going?" The boy questioned, realizing he'd never asked.

He didn't know why he expected an answer, because he didn't get one and it only frustrated him more. "Is it really so hard to tell me?"

"Perhaps." The tone was mocking. Allen wanted to punch him in his stupid face.

"I've been scared out of my wits, assaulted, dragged out of my tier and mocked." He hissed. "I think I should get to know, at least, where in God's name you are taking me." His words came out more aggresive than he would have liked- but today was really not his day.

"Third tier." Was the short, bored response he got.

The pale haired boy wanted to let an aggitated sigh- but he supposed he should be grateful for getting an answer at all. Better than nothing.

Level three was the first above ground. It was the origin of the City and apparently still looked the same as when there were no levels at all. Not that he would know- he was too young to have been around. No one was old enough to remember when the City wasn't as grand as it was currently. At that point, the metas had not come into existence, so even the ones 'blessed' with unnatural long life would have been around.

The whirring of the elevator began to slow, Allen had lost track of time again as he realized they had reached their destination. He backed away from the glass as light slowly took over his vision. He squinted; and just as he turned to face the doors, the platform jolted to a stop, causing him to stumblr forward.

Allen let out a quiet yelp, arms swinging out to balance himself.

Once more, he heard a quiet snort. That was definitely Kanda's way of laughing at him. "Graceful."

_I'm going to gracefully break your nose with my fist._ He thought without looking at the swordsman. His focus was on the glass doors that began to slowly began to slide open. Without waiting for any orders from the man behind him, he bolted out of the elevator to the center of the Tower.

Allen looked skyward at the impossibly tall structure. The glass and machinery vanished to darkness the higher it went, swallowed by the tier partition. He wondered what it would look like if their elevator had ascended to the final level, but his thoughts were cut short as he felt the familiar (painful) grip on his arm.

When the boy opened his mouth to protest he was yanked forward towards the exit and he stumbled to keep up with the Guard's quick pace.

"I already said you don't have to drag me." He huffed, attempting to pull his arm from the firm hold.

Kanda scoffed and released him, glaring back at him as a warning. The "run and I kill you" sort of warning. Pleasant.

Allen grimaced, quickening his pace to walk right beside the swordsman. His eyes could not help but wander and he took in the third level. It was definitely nicer than his own and the second. Cleaner, with buildings of light stone and wood panels. They'd entered what seemed to be the shopping district of the level, large multi-level buildings with bright signs and pedestrians moving quickly between them.

The air held a slight chill and for a moment he'd wished he'd brought a coat. Though it wasn't as if he had known that there would be a need to prepare for the cold, it had been a warm day on his tier.

When the boy glanced up, he let out a quiet gasp. There was no view of the partition like he had expected, instead there was blue. Blue and white, clouds in the sky. It awed and confused him- he knew there had to be a partition there, but why could he only see _sky_.

"Hologram."

Allen blinked, his attention going to the man beside him. He hadn't realized the swordsman had been staring at him with an impassive expression. Kanda looked completely and utterly bored and he realized it probably wasn't such a big deal to most people.

After a moment, he glanced back at the "sky." Even a fake one was beautiful, he thought; the real one must be impossibly gorgeous. It was must have been so strange to think such things about a sky, he figured. He was sure there were cities where people saw the sky every time they walked out their door. He, however, had never had that luxury.

"Hurry up."

The boy noticed how far ahead the Guard had gotten and ducked his head in embarassment; getting so wrapped up in staring at nothing more than a hologram.

Perhaps he should have been thinking about the situation he was in instead. The fact that he was probably about to be legitimately arrested for something he had not done. Allen wondered how he would be able to get out of this situation and he suddenly felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach as he jogged to catch up to the man who had dragged him into this predicament.

Would he be able to get out of this?


End file.
